Owns a shop that builds custom metal products, from staircases to trailers to machine parts.
You quote a job for steel stairs, check welds on a trailer frame, and meet a customer who needs 200 brackets by Friday.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Certificate, about 10 years after high school. Years as a welder/fabricator plus business skills.
Ways in: Trade school, On-the-job training. Training cost: Under $15k.
Majors to look at: Welding Technology, Business Administration.
Growing about average. No separate BLS projection for this specialty; rating is an estimate based on industry trends.
Low risk for 10 years. AI quoting and CNC cutting speed the shop, but custom builds, customers and crews keep it a human-run business.
Classes: Welding CTE, Business or accounting, Geometry.
Official data: O*NET occupation 11-1021.
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